Book Review: Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

Why I read this: NBRC Book of the Month. I remember when it was nominated in the Goodreads Choice Awards and was always on the fence as to if I would read it.

Genre: Contemporary Young Adult 

In a Nutshell: Story about two best friends, Glbt themes

Would suit fans of: Jennifer Niven and Celeste Ng

Rating: 3.5 stars

Find more about this book on Goodreads here

Review:

This was an easy enough "coming of age" story about two very different friends ; Aristotle and Dante. I found the style of the book interesting - it is all from Aristotle's point of view and sometimes the chapters are quite long when he is feeling good, and others when he isn't are quite short. I also enjoyed the development of the characters. 
I didn't LOVE it, but it also wasn't a bad book. I guess it just doesn't stick out above many other YA books I've read on similar topics. It does have an amazing cover though :)

SPOILERS

So don't read this part if you haven't read the book.

I didn't really believe in the ending. It felt forced to me that the parents were the ones to enlighten Ari, and to be honest, I was a little surprised at their announcement, but also their conviction of what Ari's feelings are. I didn't really ever feel like Ari had explored his sexuality and then was just told. It was a bit abrupt and I didn't finish the book convinced that Ari and Dante would stay together.